Nationals Shut Down Pitcher Stephen Strasburg

Gary Bogdon/MLB Photos via Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — The moment that the baseball world was waiting for has finally happened. The Washington Nationals have shut down starting pitcher Steven Strasburg for the rest of the season.

After Strasburg’s lackluster performance against the Marlins Friday night, the team decided it was in Strasburg’s best interest to shut him down for the remainder of the year. All season long, it was known that Strasburg would be shut down due to an innings limit placed by the team. Strasburg was pitching in his first full season after undergoing Tommy John Surgery in 2010.

“I just told Stephen that his year is over,” Nationals manager Davey Johnson said on Saturday. “He’s had a great year. I know what he’s going through. The media hype on this thing has been unbelievable. I feel it’s as hard for him as it would be anybody to get mentally, totally committed to the ballgame. And he’s reached his innings limit. So we can get past this and talk about other things for a change.”

This is a controversial decision for the Nationals to make. Not only is Strasburg one of the best pitchers in baseball, but the team also has the best record in baseball. They are willingly going into the postseason without arguably their best player.

In 28 starts, Strasburg went 15-6 with a 3.16 ERA. He wound up striking out 197 batters in 159.1 innings pitched.